Self Care

ADVICE TO HELP YOU FIND THE RIGHT TREATMENT

If you’re not sure what to do – contact NHS 111

Available 24-hours a day, seven days a week, this service provides advice on what to do if you’re feeling ill and you’re not sure what to do, as well as giving you details of local services from late night pharmacists to emergency dentists.

Expert advice from your local pharmacy

Pharmacists are highly trained professionals and are an integral part of the NHS, providing support to patients who wish to care for themselves. They can answer patients’ questions about choosing and using the right medicine, provide easy to understand advice on treating everyday ailments, and help patients to decide if they need to see a doctor. Advice from pharmacists is free and you don’t need an appointment to see them

Minor injuries, accidents and illness

YOUR GP PRACTICE TREATS MINOR ILLNESSES

Locally we also have a number of centres staffed by experienced nurses who treat minor injuries and illness, with support from GPs as necessary.

The new Urgent Care Centre opened at Loughborough Hospital at 8.00am on Wednesday 27th March. The Walk-in Centre at Pinfold Gate is now closed.

The Urgent Care Centre is for people of all ages who have urgent health needs that are not life threatening.

It will be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year and you do not need an appointment. You can contact the Urgent Care Centre by calling 01509 568800.

Service enhancements include:

round the clock access to medical support from health professionals

x ray availability from 5 days to 7 days a week

working with EMAS to ensure right treatment, right place, first time

less need for transfers to A and E which is better for patients and visitors

The Walk-in centre and minor injury services are for urgent but not emergency care. They are not Accident & Emergency departments and should not be used as a way to bypass making a routine appointment with your GP practice.

Advice on care when your doctor’s surgery is closed

Need medical help when your GP surgery is closed? For URGENT medical care that cannot wait until your GP surgery opens, call your GP practice to get through to the Leicestershire and Rutland GP Out of Hours Service. The service is open from 6.30pm and 8.00am Monday to Friday, and all day Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays.

The service assists patients in getting the right treatment for their condition. Trained call handlers take details of the patient and their medical problem and arrange for a nurse or doctor to call them back to conduct a telephone clinical assessment of their needs. This assessment could result in a range of actions:

· most often (in a third of cases) the caller is given advice on caring for themselves at home

· if further assessment is required, an appointment is made for a face to face consultation in one of five local primary care centres

· in some cases, if medically required, a home visit will be arranged

· occasionally, callers with true emergencies are referred to the ambulance service or accident and emergency department.

The centre deals with out of hours calls from patients registered with all Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland GP practices (with the exception of a practice in Castle Donnington and the majority of practices in Hinckley which are covered by separate out of hours services from neighbouring counties. These can be contacted by calling your GP surgery when it is closed).

Serious injuries and emergencies

A&E IS FOR EMERGENCIES ONLY, it is not for minor illnesses like ear ache and coughs and colds. Go straight to an Accident and Emergency Department with serious injuries or illness. There are Accident and Emergency Departments at:

· Leicester Royal Infirmary

· Derbyshire Royal Infirmary

· Queens Hospital, Burton

· Grantham and District Hospital

· Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham

· Peterborough District Hospital

· Kettering General Hospital

· Northampton General Hospital

Call 999 for an ambulance for emergencies such as loss of consciousness, severe chest pain, serious breathing difficulties, serious accidents or severe loss of blood.

Emergency dental treatment

Your doctor is not trained to deal with dental problems. Dentists do not work in minor injury units, the Walk-in Centre or Accident and Emergency departments. If you have toothache or an abscess in your mouth, especially if you have swelling around the tooth, you should contact your dentist during normal opening hours. To access emergency dental advice out of opening hours please call NHS Direct on 0845 6031322.

Sexual health Genito-Urinary Medicine Services are available at Loughborough Hospital. The service offers a range of advice and treatment, including: the diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, vaccination against Hepatitis, emergency contraception, free pregnancy testing and care for victims of sexual assault

Clinics are by appointment only and are completely confidential. To book an appointment call 01509 568888 between 8.30am and 5pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, or between 8.30am and 7pm on a Wednesday.